Member Article

Wallsend apprentice builds boats for Rio Olympics

Ovington Boats, world leaders in high performance dinghy and yacht construction has been building Olympic boats for over 30 years.

Last March Chris Turner, managing director of Ovington decided to retain their bespoke skills by recruiting a “boat building apprentice.”

Tyne North Training, who have been recruiting apprentices for in excess of 40 years, were given the exciting challenge of finding a young person who aspired to learn a true artisan craft which is unique to the North East region.

Ovington, who operate from their workshops, based in North Shields hand build racing boats to the highest standards using a variety of modern materials and construction methods.

After a rigorous recruitment process Tyne North Training identified Sam Stockill who stood out from the rest. Sam who is 18, and from Wallsend, secured this apprenticeship and has never looked back. Only last week Sam actually completed his first racing boat which he actually built himself.

Chris Turner has been that impressed by his new apprentice and Tyne North Training that he has just taken on an additional 2 apprentices: Tony Hay (Seghill) and Lee Blackburn (Dudley).

Chris said: “Top sailors come back time and time again because of the world renown craftsmanship which we offer. Our expertise has to be passed on to the next generation and our apprenticeship programme with Tyne North Training will enable us to continue to build the best racing boats in the world.”

Tyne North Training’s Recruitment Coordinator Katie Illingworth commented: “We are delighted to be working with a company which has had Olympic success at Sydney, Athens, Beijing and London. You never know a Tyne North Training apprentice may be helping to build a boat for a Rio de Janeiro Gold medallist!”

Mick Pears, Tyne North Training’s Assessor has seen Sam join the company as a young man wishing to learn a true craft. With Mick’s passion and enthusiasm to work with youngsters looking to learn a trade he is confident that Sam will go on to become an integral member of the team at Ovington Boats.

He added: “These type of apprenticeships do not come along very often. When they do, youngsters should grab these opportunities; which is exactly what Sam has done”.

To find out what other exciting apprenticeship opportunities Tyne North Training have to offer or if you wish to recruit an apprentice please contact Katie Illingworth on 0191 262 6860

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Andrew Thorpe .